Special Needs Planning

Here are some eye-opening statistics. These are from the U.S. Census Bureau report in 2000. (It will be interesting to compare these when the latest Census reports are available.)

• 51.2 million Americans reported having a disability;
• 13-16% of U.S. families had a child with special needs;
• 15 out of every 1,000 children born in the U.S. had an Autism disorder;
• Between 1 and 1.5 million American had an Autism disorder.

Thanks to medical care advances in recent years, many with special needs now outlive their parents and/or caregivers. Planning that does not include specific provisions for the special needs person can have disastrous consequences, including the loss of valuable government benefits.

Planning Tip: A Special Needs Trust is a critical component of planning for families with a special needs person. This type of trust is designed to provide the ongoing support the special needs person requires without jeopardizing government benefits.

Planning Tip: Insurance on the life of a parent, grandparent or other relative can provide the trust funds necessary to pay for care and extras that are not provided by government benefits.